This article originally ran Jan. 20, 2009 on nj.com
New Jersey Education Commissioner Lucille Davy joined 450 students at the Robert Treat Academy in Newark to witness history today: the inauguration of Barack Obama as 44th president of the United States.
Students at the K-8 charter school were among the millions across the country and around the world to watch Obama become the country's first African-American president.
Students cheered when a CNN anchor announced moments after noon that Obama just became president even though he had not yet taken the oath of office. (Under the Constitution, the president's term begins at noon.) Students erupted in applause again after Obama was sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts.
Davy said the inauguration was a perfect teaching moment and she was thrilled to join the students at Robert Treat.
"The students saw people joining together not only on the mall, but in Chicago, and Memphis," Davy said. "All over the country, people stopped what they were doing and got together and celebrated this historic occasion."
The event was hosted by the North Ward Center, which founded Robert Treat Academy in 1997. This year, the North Ward Center opted to incorporate its annual Martin Luther King Day celebration with the inauguration. More than 75 guests attended, including elected officials, foundation heads and members of the community.
North Ward Center Executive Director Adrianne Davis said it was a natural fit this year to mark the contributions of Dr. King with an event that celebrates the culmination of his dream.
"Martin Luther King challenged segregation and fought for civil rights," said Davis, who witnessed Dr. King's "I have a dream" speech on Aug. 28, 1963. "His words and actions paved the way for the election of our nation's first African-American president."
Speaking to the guests before the inauguration, Nathan Hawley, the president of Robert Treat's student council, said Obama is a role model for his generation much the same way Dr. King was for a previous generation.
"Every generation has their own inspiration or role models they want to live up to," said Hawley, an eighth grader who has applied to St. Paul's School in Concord, N.H. "In the Sixties it was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and President John F. Kennedy. Now, in the 21st Century, I can say as an American citizen that Barack Obama is my inspiration and role model."
Hawley said Barack's inauguration signaled to him that opportunities are open to everyone.
"Dr. King's dream has come full circle with the inauguration of Barack Obama," Hawley said. "Yes, today is significant to me as an African-American. However, I have never been more proud just to say I am an American."
Steve Adubato, founder of the North Ward Center, said the inauguration of Obama was one of the significant events in American history, as big as the signing of the Declaration of Independence or the Emancipation Proclamation.
"For the first time we have a president of the United States who is not a white male," said Adubato, a former history teacher. "That is such a significant event in our nation's history that we can't even begin to understand it. It's much bigger than we realize."
Acting Executive Essex County Superintendent Lawrence S. Feinsod, who attended the event, said he was glad Robert Treat used the inauguration as a teaching lesson.
"It sends a message that no text book or teacher ever could," Feinsod said. "To see a man of color become president...No other experience can match it. They will remember this moment for the rest of their lives."
